Blackwell made a face like a hanged man rolling his eyes: "The Count learned the news during lunch and almost used a caviar spoon to stab the messenger's neck. His exact words were: 'Tell Arthur, even if you have to stuff Eckett into a hearse to bring him back, don't let that bastard appear in the Tsar's telescope with a reporter from The Times.'"
Arthur paced to the frost-covered bay window, the street scene of Moscow resembling an unfinished pencil sketch. Serfs collecting firewood were picking up scattered kindling with frozen hands, while the golden domes of the Kremlin glowed a sickly yellow under the dark clouds in the distance.
"What did Captain Hutter's secret report say?"
